Russian defense firms move production to China
Russian enterprises associated with the defense industry (VPK) began relocating production to China.
Consensus
- Russian companies involved in the military-industrial complex have begun relocating production to China.
- The relocation is linked to international sanctions against Russian defense firms.
- The information comes from a report by the Washington-based C4ADS research center.
- The company 'Element' started assembling chips in China in 2024.
- The company 'Element' is a major Russian microelectronics producer supplying the defense sector.
- The company 'Element' has been under U.S. sanctions since 2022.
- The company 'Element' registered at least four subsidiaries in China and sought Chinese language teachers for employees.
- The company 'Stankomashstroy' plans to open a facility in China for producing five-axis machine tools.
- The 'Stankomashstroy' company is under U.S. sanctions since 2023.
- The 'Stankomashstroy' company previously supplied equipment to defense plants producing ballistic missiles and air defense systems.
- A Chinese state-linked company, Baoji Machine Tool Group, is involved in the 'Stankomashstroy' project.
- Oleg Kochetkov, owner of 'Stankomashstroy', registered a company in China in 2023: Shaanxi Stermasi Technology.
Points of divergence
- The relocation of production allows China to gain Russian engineering knowledge previously kept within Russia. — tg_istories_media
- The Russian government announced in January 2026 the creation of the state corporation 'United Microelectronics Company' (OMK). — tg_istories_media
- OMK is considering purchasing stakes in small Chinese chip factories to secure stable production capacity for Russian clients. — tg_istories_media
- OMK may be led by Sergey Khozhlov, the head of a company controlled by Sberbank. — tg_istories_media
- The report by C4ADS focuses on military-technical cooperation between Moscow and Beijing. — tg_moscowtimes_ru
- The main goal of the relocation is to circumvent international sanctions. — tg_radiosvoboda
Coverage (5 sources)
- Russia moves defense-industrial enterprises to China despite fears of industrial espionage — ASTRA
- Russian enterprises linked to the defense industry began relocating production to China — The Moscow Times
- ↪ Russian defense companies begin moving production to China, according to report from Washington Center for... — Радио Свобода
- ↪ Russian defense companies begin moving production to China, according to Washington Center for Perspectives report — Радио Свобода
- Russian companies fulfilling orders for the defense industry began moving production to China. As a result, Beijing obtained Russian engineering knowledge that previously remained within the country — C4ADS — Важные истории